LUCAS SPORTSMAN WINNERS CROWNED AT NORWALK SUMMIT NHRA NATIONALS
DRAG RACING ACTION ONLINE AND COURTESY NHRA COMMUNICATIONS IMAGES STEVE EMBLING
TOP ALCOHOL DRAGSTER
Canadian racer Jeff Veale, runner-up earlier this year at the Gatornationals, collected his second Top Alcohol Dragster win in the last three years and his third overall when he drove his dragster to a solid 5.35 pass to defeat reigning world champ Julie Nataas’ trouble-plagued run in the final round who slowed to an 18 second run in the loss. The finals were the first time the two faced each other in the money run.
Veale, from Canfield Ontario put his NAPA sponsored A/FD in the #7 spot with a 5.338 and defeated Matt Cummings and Sean Cowie on his way to the win in Ohio.
2023 Lucas champ Nataas who calls Indianapolis home, had her Randy Meyer tuned car in the field at #4 with a 5.287 and beat Jackie Fricke and low qualifier Hunter Green to get to the finals at Norwalk
TOP ALCOHOL FUNNY CAR
A month after breaking the track record en route to a regional event win at Summit Motorsports Park, former Lucas World Champ Sean Bellemeur from Placentia Calif.returned to the Top Alcohol Funny Car winner’s circle in Norwalk after defeating fast-rising rookie Madison Gordon in final round, the continuation of a power struggle that raged for years between Bellemeur and Gordon’s now-retired father, Doug.
As in the Top Alcohol Dragster finals, neither driver had faced each other in a final round before. At the green Bartone was first off the line and set Low ET of the event with a 5.430 to Gordon’s traction plagued mid 15 second run. The win at Norwalk was Bellemeur’s 39th NHRA National Wally.
Bellemeur placed his Tony Bartone owned, Steve Boggs tuned Camaro in the #4 slot at a 5.521 and improved to mid 5.40’s in earlier rounds defeating Stan Sipos and Kyle Smith. Gordon, from Paso Robles Calif., in her first full year of NHRA Top Alcohol Funny Car racing put the family-owned Beta Motorcycles Camaro in the bottom half of the field, #13. Gordon like Bellemeur, picked up the pace once eliminations began running 5.40’s to get by Shane Westerfield and Ulf Leanders to meet Bellemeur.
Maddi Gordon is impressing in her 2024 rookie season. The Paso Robles driver is currently sitting in the #1 spot in Lucas Top Alcohol Funny Car points.
COMPETITION
In Competition Eliminator it was Elite Motorsports team member Royce Freeman driving a B/AA Camaro to the win over D3 veteran Robert Bailey in his A/ED. Freeman, from Lindsey Okla. was super late off the line with a reaction time of 0.141 to Bailey’s slightly better 0.081 but had the horses to defeat the Wabash Ind. racer with a .508 under 6.952 as Baily trailed with a 0.443 under 6.677.
The win was Freeman’s first ever NHRA win. Freeman previously was a two-time runner-up in Top Sportsman.
Bailey in his A/ED had the better light in the final but didn’t have the power to hold off Freeman
SUPER STOCK
Jeff Dona from Cape Girardeau Mo. collected career win No. 4, and his first since 2020 when he drove to a double-breakout win against Monty Bogan from Boiling Springs S.C. in the final.
Dona in his ’98 Firebird SS/HA got a slight starting line advantage with a 0.041 to Bogan’s 0.049 and at the stripe broke out with a 9.787 on his 9.80 dial as Bogan in his ’92 Camaro SS/BS was further under his dial with a 9.089 on a 9.11.
STOCK
There was a first-time winner in Stock as Ken Whitcher from Beliot Ohio drove his G/SA ’69 Camaro to a final round win against Magnolia Texas racer Brenda Grubbs in a double breakout final.
Whitcher nailed the tree with a great 0.003 light to Grubbs’ decent 0.026 but ran closer to his dial with a 11.250 on his 11.26. Grubbs lost with a breaking out 9.989 on her 10.01 dial in her ’69 AA/SA Camaro.
SUPER COMP
Ten years after winning the Summit Racing Equipment NHRA Nationals for the first time in Super Gas, Phil Smida from Canfield Ohio was back in the Norwalk winner’s circle after surviving the math of a tight double-breakout bout with Jamie Elrod from Lima Ohio.
Both drivers had similar reaction times and on the top end, both went under the 8.90 index with Smida going under by 0.004 less for his sixth NHRA Wally.
SUPER GAS
Terre Haute Ind. racer Bob Prose scored his second career NHRA win and his first in Super Gas when he drove his popular ’65 Rambler wagon to an easy victory after red-hot Michael Handras from Brooklyn NY fouled by .007-second in the final round in his Chevy.
Handras in his Muscle Milk Chevy left too soon in the finals of Super Gas giving Prose his second NHRA career win
TOP DRAGSTER
Al Peavler from Olrey Ill. joined his son, Blake, as an NHRA national event winner when he stopped Chris Sullivan in the final of Right Trailers Top Dragster. Peavler left with a great .002 light and won the double-breakout bout with a 6.121 on his 6.14 dial after a near perfect start. Sullivan from Auburn Ill. took the loss with a 6.574 on a 6.62 dial
Sullivan, near lane, had to settle for a runner up in a double breakout final in Top Dragster
TOP SPORTSMAN
Hinkle had the better package in the finals of Top Sportsman in his Pontiac and left Norwalk with the national points lead
Danville KY. James Hinkle’s incredible 2024 season continued in Norwalk as he won his third national event of the year in Right Trailers Top Sportsman. Hinkle, the current championship leader, put together a .008-second package behind the wheel of his ’05 Grand Am in the final against Zach Sackman from Channahon Ill. Sackman dialed in at a 6.49 in his Chevelle and ran a 6.514 but it paled in comparison to Hinkle’s nearly right on 7.463 on a 7.46 dial.
Sackman, driving two cars at Norwalk, almost pulled it off in Top Sportsman
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